The league phase of the third edition of the UEFA Nations League ends on Tuesday, with one ticket to the final tournament in June 2023 still up for grabs.
UEFA.com takes stock ahead of Tuesday’s matchday six fixtures.
Tuesday, September 27
Group A2 Switzerland – Czechia
Group A2 Portugal – Spain
Group B1 Ukraine – Scotland
Group B1 Republic of Ireland – Armenia
Group B2 Albania – Iceland
Group B4 Sweden – Slovenia
Group B4 Norway – Serbia
Group C2 Greece – Northern Ireland
Group C2 Kosovo – Cyprus
All kick-offs at 8:45 p.m.
Portugal and Spain fight for the last ticket
An Iberian derby that looks like a real barrage for the final phase is on the program for this last evening of the league phase. Portugal top the group after surprise defeatSpain 2-1 at home against Switzerland on Saturday, and the team of Fernando Santos has only to avoid defeat in Braga to validate their ticket. The last five meetings between the two teams have ended in draws, but Luis Enrique wants to be reassuring about the intentions of his Spanish team. “It’s not going to be easy to go and win there, but another draw won’t do us any good,” he said.
Scotland – Ukraine III
Less than four months after their duel in FIFA World Cup play-offsUkraine and Scotland meet again for a crucial meeting that will determine who will be promoted to League A. Scotland only need a draw in Krakow after two consecutive victories against theUkraine and the Republic of Irelandbut Ukraine seems to have found its rhythm three days after its trip to Hampden by registering five goals against Armenia Saturday. “We’re going up against a very good team from Ukraine, but they have to win,” Scotland coach Steve Clarke said.
Haaland – Mitrovic
The two top scorers in the 2022/23 UEFA Nations League face off in Oslo on Tuesday as Erling Haaland’s Norway host Aleksandar Mitrović’s Serbia. These two teams are tied on ten points each in Group B4 after the Norway lose to Slovenia on Saturday, while a Mitrović hat-trick helped Serbia win 4-1 v Sweden. Haaland scored the only goal when those teams went met on the first day ; Can the Man City striker offer Norway a place in League A?
But also…
• Switzerland could still complete a campaign in which they won against Portugal and (for the first time) against Spain by being relegated; the Czech Republic will overtake the Swiss if they beat them in St. Gallen.
• Eire will end a rocky campaign by hosting an Armenian side who beat them on matchday one. A similar result and the Irish will be relegated to League C.
• Sweden remain on a four-game losing streak, and anything other than a home win against Slovenia would mean relegation to League C.
• Greece have already won Group C2, but the bottom line remains: Kosovo, Northern Ireland and Cyprus can all find themselves in the relegation play-offs.
Calendar
Semi-finals: June 14 and 15, 2023
Final and match for third place: June 18, 2023
Relegation play-offs: 21–23 and 24–26 March 2024